Ichigo and the Shinigami Academy
by Namikaze Holly
Summary: Repost, edited. Future-fic. Ichiruki. Ichigo has died. However, as he is still technically only a subsitute shinigami, he is forced to attend the Shinigami Academy, all while keeping his identity secret. This is going to be fun.
1. Confessions Have To Be Done On Rooftops

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.**

_**This was originally on my other account, Namikaze Artemis, but I got too embarrassed of it. So, I moved it over here, with some edits.**_

Prologue: Confessions Have To Be Done On Rooftops

* * *

><p>A deep scowl landed on Ichigo's face. He stared out the window, not paying attention to the teacher's blathering. She had been repeating the same things over and over again for a while now.<p>

The bell finally rang, thankfully, putting a stop to the teacher's lecture.

"Then, I'll see you all tomorrow!" the teacher called out, slamming her hands onto her desk. "Don't forget to do your homework!"

Ichigo got up from his desk, yawning. He was walking towards the door when Orihime stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"What is it, Inoue?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"Um, Kurosaki-kun..." Orihime said hesitantly. "Could you come up to the rooftop?"

"Sure, why not?" Ichigo scratched his head. "Any particular reason why, though?"

"Er... not really," Orihime answered, avoiding Ichigo's eyes.

* * *

><p>Ichigo and Orihime quickly walked up the stairs to the rooftop. Ichigo pushed the door open. After keeping it open for Orihime to walk through, he leaned against the door. Despite himself, he was quite curious as of why Orihime had felt the need to bring him up here.<p>

After advancing a few paces and turning around to look straight into Ichigo's eyes, Orihime took a deep breath.

She said the words she had been dying to say for months.

"Kurosaki-kun, I love you."

Ichigo looked at her with a blank expression. His mind had frozen, unable to process the words that must not be what he thought he heard.

"Sorry, I must have misheard you. Could you say that again?" Ichigo asked haltingly.

"I said that I love you, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime repeated firmly.

Ichigo paled slightly.

_What can I say? _Ichigo thought in sheer panic. _Inoue is a good friend and all, but I don't really see her in a romantic manner. I mean, we don't even call each other by our first names! Though that may be more because of habit if anything... and don't forget about Ru-_

Ichigo cut his thoughts off before they ventured into dangerous territory.

"Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime said, her voice already tinged with disappointment.

Ichigo took a deep breath.

_Better get it over with._

"I'm sorry Inoue. You're a good friend and all. But – I don't like you in that way."

"I see," said Orihime quietly.

They stood in silence for a brief moment before it was broken by Orihime.

"Do you like Kuchiki-san?"

A pale pink tinge covered Ichigo's face. He shook his head.

"Of course not! That's- that's- why would you think that?" Ichigo demanded, a familiar scowl settling back onto his face.

Orihime smiled, a small, somewhat bitter smile.

"Kurosaki-kun..." Orihime said softly. "The least you could do is tell me the truth."

Ichigo's face turned a little redder at that, for various reasons.

"I suppose I might like Rukia," Ichigo admitted, scratching his head.

"Kuchiki-san is a shinigami, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime pointed out. "You live in different worlds. Literally."

"I'll die and go to Soul Society eventually, you know." Ichigo said dryly.

"But you'll probably be an old man by then," Orihime countered.

Ichigo sighed, ever so slightly. "Inoue, you know that my old man is a Shinigami, right?"

"Yes," Orihime replied, starting to see where he was going with this.

"I'm half-shinigami. In fact, you could said that I 'died' when Urahara cut of my chain in order for me to regain my shinigami powers." Ichigo explained.

Orihime's eyes widened, as what Ichigo was saying started to sink in.

"Therefore, while my human body will age normally, my soul will age like any Shinigami," Ichigo continued. "When I eventually go to Soul Society, I probably won't look much older than I do now."

"I see." Orihime stayed quiet for a moment longer, before coming up with another arguement. She hated herself for having to ask all these questions, but she had to know. She had to know if there was any chance at all.

"Kurosaki-kun, you'll probably die in seventy years or so. Even for a shinigami, that's a long time," Orihime said. "If Kuchiki-san likes you back, I doubt she'd wait that long either. Not to mention that your feelings may change as well."

Ichigo looked up at the sky, an unusually melancholy expression on his face.

"I don't know if Rukia likes me. Probably not. But I don't care. I will wait, no matter how long it takes. And I will find out, eventually." Ichigo said. Looking back towards Orihime, he gave her a brief, mischievous, grin. "Also, I think Ishida might like you."

Orihime blinked in surprise. "Wait, what?"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, behind the door leading to the rooftop, Rukia and Ishida had identical expressions of incredulity. Chad just looked slightly surprised.<p>

"What- that Kurosaki, saying unnecessary things!" Ishida snapped in embarrassment.

Rukia looked at the ground, completely floored at what she had just found out.

Chad looked at Rukia. "Do you like-"

"None of your business," Rukia snapped, starting to stomp down the stairway.

"Will you wait?" Chad said quietly.

Rukia stopped, her foot suspended mid-air. "Of course."

She softly placed her foot down on the next step.

"That idiot."

Ishida and Chad were silenced at those words.

"You know, if you don't hurry, Orihime and Ichigo will find you when they come down from the rooftop," Rukia added, looking back up at the two of them.

Ishida and Chad exchanged glances of terror- well, what passed as an expression of terror for Chad- and raced down the stairs.

Rukia snickered as she ran right after them.

* * *

><p><em><strong>I was <strong>_**planning **_**to not edit it much, but then my hand started twitching.**_


	2. Waiting in Lines is Annoying & Useless

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.**

_**Refer to Chapter 1 for information about why this story is being moved, etc.**_

Chapter 1: Waiting in Lines Is Annoying & Useless

* * *

><p><strong>March 29th, 2082. Living World. Karakura Town<strong>

"This is problematic," Ichigo muttered, staring down at his (very old) body.

His substitute shinigami badge had cried out its now-familiar cry of 'Hollow~!' as usual. Sure, it was already ten at night, but it wasn't as if he was going to sleep yet. Ichigo had gone out to defeat the hollow. Then, he came back and attempted to get back into his body.

Key word: attempt.

"What's the matter, Ichigo?" Kon asked, leaning against a small lamp on Ichigo's bedside table.

"I can't get into my body!" Ichigo complained, flopping on the bed.

"What?" Kon said incredulously. "Still, why would you want to get into a body like that?"

"I don't have a choice," Ichigo snapped. It was true that his body was now very old, covered with wrinkles and gray hair. He spent as much time as possible outside it. Luckily, his shinigami form still looked like a teenager.

Kon jumped down from the bedside table and examined Ichigo's living body. He frowned.

"Hey, do you think you died?" Kon suggested.

Ichigo shrugged in defeat. "Maybe. It would be about time, anyhow. What the heck am I supposed to do, then?"

Kon shrugged.

"You're useful," Ichigo said, sarcasm evident in his voice. "I guess I'll go ask Hat-and-Clogs."

* * *

><p>Ichigo walked through the streets. He could have just shunpo'ed towards the Urahara Store, but he was in no hurry to go visit Urahara. Besides, it wasn't as if anyone could see him.<p>

"Ichigo-niisan!"

Ichigo mentally took back his statement as he reluctantly turned around.

"Hi, 'Ame." Ichigo sighed. "Do your parents know that you're out here?"

Ishida Yoshiame was the grandson of Ishida and Orihime. Ishida had taught his son Quincy powers, and his son in turn planned to teach Yoshiame as well, eventually.

However, he was still five.

"Nope!" Yoshiame grinned. "I snuck out when I saw you, Ichigo-onisan!"

Ichigo scowled.

"What?" Yoshiame said defensively, crossing his arms.

Ichigo grabbed Yoshiame's hand. "I'm taking you back to your house... I'm sure your parents are worried."

"I don't think they noticed!" Yoshiame objected, struggling against Ichigo's grip. "They think I'm asleep!"

"Yes, whatever you say," Ichigo muttered, dragging Yoshiame back towards his house.

* * *

><p>After returning Yoshiame to his father, Ichigo finally reached the Urahara Store.<p>

A sign declared the store's rather unimaginative title in large black letters.

Ichigo spared a moment to regard the traditional Japanese-style building. More modern-style buildings surrounded the store on three sides, creating a harsh contrast.

_Seriously, while pratically everywhere else in Karakura Town has changed, how did this shop staythe same?_

Pushing the sliding door to the side, he entered the store.

"Hello?" Ichigo said hesitantly. "Anyone here?"

He looked around the store, searching for Urahara.

"Why, hello, Kurosaki-san!" Urahara suddenly appeared from behind a pile of candy. Covering his face with his fan, he looked at Ichigo. "What brings you here?"

"I can't get into my body. Any idea why?" Ichigo said brusquely, not fazed at Urahara's sudden appearance.

"Hm. I had expected this eventually, but not this quickly," Urahara murmured. Slamming his fan shut, he regarded Ichigo with a serious expression. "Kurosaki-san, I'm afraid you're dead."

"Damn. Just... damn," Ichigo muttered.

"That's the only reason you wouldn't be able to get back into your body," Urahara added. "Soul Society has been waiting for this for decades, you know."

Ichigo looked wary at those words. Looking as though he very much didn't want to say his next words, he nevertheless asked Urahara his question.

"What am I supposed to do now, then?"

"Why, you go to Soul Society, of course. And go to the Shinigami Academy to become a proper shinigami!" Urahara said cheerfully.

"Oh, I see- _as if I'd say that!_" Ichigo snapped, crossing his arms. "You can't be serious!"

"No matter how strong you are, you're still technically a _substitute_ shinigami," Urahara pointed out. "You need to go to the Shinigami Academy to be officially recognized as a shinigami. Not to mention that you know no kidou, your reiatsu control is atrocious, and you can't even seal your zanpankutou-"

"- I can seal my zanpakutou- Dad showed me," Ichigo cut in.

Urahara ignored him. "- Since it just _happens_ to be the sign-up time for the Shinigami Academy-"

"'Just happens'? You didn't have anything to do with my 'death', did you?" Ichigo demanded.

"Of course not!" Urahara exclaimed in faux cheer. "Anyways, come here tomorrow morning and I'll send you off to Soul Society with a map. Think up an alias."

Ichigo scowled fiercely. "Why do I have to think up a fake name?"

"You'll pretty famous in Soul Society. It'll cause an uproar if Kurosaki Ichigo was found in the Academy," Urahara explained. "Go away, now."

Ichigo groaned. "I don't have a choice, do I?"

"No," Urahara answered.

* * *

><p><strong>March 30th, 2082. Soul Society. East Rukongai District 1.<strong>

Ichigo was scowling as he jumped out of the Senkai-Mon. His familiar black shihakushou was gone, replaced by a threadbare brown hakama that was covered in holes.

"That Hat-and-Clogs might've given me a bit of warning!" Ichigo muttered irritably. Urahara had pushed him straight in the Senkai-Mon.

_Anyhow, Urahara said that it would be easy to find the line up for the tests, but I don't see-_

As Ichigo turned around, he cut off his thoughts. The field in front of him was positively _stuffed _with hopeful shinigami-to-bes. He sighed and got into the long line-up. At least it moved quickly. Most of the people here didn't have an ounce of reiatsu.

"Hey! Hey, you!"

Ichigo looked up. "Oh, hi." There was a black-haired boy looking at him.

"Hi, deaf-ears. I'm Sakata Shuuichi. You may call me Shuu," the boy said haughtily. Seconds later, he burst out laughing, the haughty expression disappearing. "Sorry, I can't keep that up for long. Funny, though, right?"

"...Nice to meet you, Shuu," Ichigo said, pointedly ignoring Shuu's statement. "I'm Ku-kurogi Ichirou."

"Nice to meet you too, Ichirou," Shuu replied with a grin.

Ichigo blinked, looking at him with interest. This kid had some reiatsu, unlike most of the people in the field.

"Do you think you'll get in!" Shuu asked.

"Yeah, definitely. I think you'll get in too." Ichigo predicted.

"You think?" Shuu asked doubtfully.

"Yeah," Ichigo nodded.

* * *

><p>"Next!" a shinigami shouted.<p>

Ichigo moved forwards into one of the many doors leading into the building.

He entered a small room with a shinigami sitting behind a desk in front of him. There was nothing but some papers and a strange device on the desk.

"What's your name?" a brunette asked, not bothering to look up. Ichigo recognized her as the 13th squad's 3rd seat, Kiyone.

"Kurosaki Ichigo," Ichigo answered, a smirk forming on his face.

"No, reall-" Kiyone finally looked up. "Kurosaki-san, it really is you! Did you _finally_ die? And what's with your hair?"

"What's with the empathis on _finally_?" Ichigo complained. "And I don't see anything different with my-"

Then he noticed his black hair.

"Urahara-san, that b-" Ichigo started to swear.

"- now, let's see. There really isn't point in a test- "

"When did he dye it, anyways?" Ichigo muttered.

"- I'll just fill out this paperwork. What's your alias going to be?" Kiyone asked. "You do have one, right?"

"Kurogi Ichirou," Ichigo answered.

"Kurogi Ichirou," Kiyone repeated. Under her breath, she muttered something else.

"Hope I got the characters right..."

Opening a drawer in the desk, she placed a key, a map, and a booklet of some sort on the desk.

"Here you go. You'll receive your uniform sometime this week," Kiyone explained. "You can leave by that door. Head towards your room, I circled it on the map."

She waved towards a door.

Ichigo nodded and headed out.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Done. 'Yayz'.<strong>_


	3. Watch Out For Karma And Irony

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach. If I did Ichigo and Rukia would be together already.**

_**In case you didn't notice already, the bold and italic writing is the 'beta-reader' a.k.a. current me, and the normal bold is the 12-year me.**_

Chapter 3: Watch Out For Karma And Irony

* * *

><p><strong>March 30th, 2082. Shinigami Academy, A Wing.<strong>

_A week until the classes start, huh... _Ichigo thought. He was briskly walking through the hallways, following the map he had been given to his room.

Ichigo stopped in front of an unremarkable wooden door. A sign with the numbers '217' written in Japanese kanji was hung on the door.

_'Wonder if my roommate is there already... or if I even have one yet. _

Ichigo opened the door, his eyes landing on a boy sitting on one of the two beds in the room.

The room itself was simply furnished, with a bed and a dresser on each side of the room. Light came into the room from a large window on the far wall.

"Hello," a blond-haired boy greeted, putting the book he was reading on the bed. "Nice to meet you. My name is Kasumi-Ouji Kotarou."

"Hi," Ichigo said in turn. "Kurosa-gi Ichirou, nice to meet cha."

Frowning, he stared at Kotarou intently. He looked somewhat familiar.

"Do I know you?" Ichigo asked, finally.

"Probably not. You're from Rukongai, right?" Kotarou asked.

"Erm, yeah," Ichigo said, scratching the back of his head. That was a lie.

"I'm a noble," Kotarou said simply. Picking his book back up, he proceeded to ignore Ichigo.

"Hmm." Ichigo grabbed Kotarou's book, causing him to let out some protests. Ichigo ignored them. "You're a noble, right? Then you've probably never been out much. You've probably been protected in your mansion all your life. This is the perfect chance to explore!"

Ichigo grabbed Kotarou's wrist and dragged him out the door.

Kotarou blinked. The way of the nobles was not exactly common knowledge.

How did a boy from _Rukongai_ know even that much?

* * *

><p><strong>Shinigami Academy, D Wing.<strong>

Ichigo scowled. "This place is _way_ too big. This is the _twentieth _Zanjutsu classroom we've run into. How many are there?"

The two of them were walking through the hallways, systematically opening every door they spotted. Well, Ichigo was doing most of the opening.

"Why did you drag me out?" Kotarou complained.

"Perfect time to figure out where everything is. Come on, Kotarou, we'll be lost on the first day if we don't look around."

"That's Kasumi-Ouji-san, Kurogi-san," Kotarou corrected.

"Meh, we're friends, right?" Ichigo smirked

"Since when?" Kotarou demanded.

"Since now," Ichigo answered, opening another door.

Kotarou sighed. "If you say so, Kurogi-san."

"Oi! You two! What are you doing here?"

Katsura and Ichigo turned around to see three burly sixth-years. They were the very epitome of stereotypical school bully.

Ichigo scowled. "We were just exploring."

"Yeah? Well, this is our personal zanjutsu room."

"I was under the impression that no one owns zanjustsu rooms," Kotarou muttered.

"You're awfully confident for a first-year, considering that you probably can't even use a sword," the one in front growled.

Ichigo realized that it was a bad idea to anger these sixth-years, even though they seemed like they had jumped out of a badly written school story.

"We were just going," Kotarou quickly said.

"Sure, then go," Burly No. 1 sneered.

"I'm afraid you're blocking the doorway," Katsura said.

"Yeah? Then I suppose that you'll have to fight us to get through. You see, I hate first-years. They're so weak. And annoying. So, I like to teach them a lesson." Burly No. 2 held up a shinai, a wooden weapon used for practice.

Ichigo sighed. "You guys are idiots, aren't you?"

The three sixth-years glared at Ichigo.

"You'll pay for that!" Burly No. 2 snapped.

"You little-" Burly No. 1 was knocked out before he could lift his shinai. Ichigo had shunpo'd behind him and had hit him on the back of the head.

Before the other two could even speak, Ichigo knocked them unconscious as well.

Kotarou's eyes widened. "That... was..."

Ichigo winced.

"_So cool!_" Kotarou exclaimed, an excited expression on his face. A moment later, he coughed and composed himself.

Ichigo blinked in surpirse. He wasn't expecting that.

"Uh, okay..." Ichigo muttered.

"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Kotarou asked.

"Erm, Rukongai was a rough place," Ichigo said, fabricating a lie.

"And shunpo?" Kotarou demanded.

"That was shunpo?" Ichigo said innocently.

* * *

><p><strong>April 1st, 2082. 2:37 p.m.<strong>

Ichigo sighed. There wasn't anything to do, as Kotarou had gone home to his mansion until school started. Kotarou came yesterday just to see his roommate, and to see what sort of Academy was.

His uniform had been delivered earlier today, so he was wearing his new blue/white hakama.

Ichigo lay back down on his bed. Suddenly, the door flew open.

"Ichigo!" Rukia cried.

_I should've locked the door._

Ichigo quickly sat up. "Rukia? What are yo-"

Rukia hit Ichigo on the head, a slight frown on her face. "Why didn't you tell me that you came to Soul Society, idiot? And what's with your hair?"

"Why does everyone ask me that?" Ichigo muttered, irritation lacing his voice.

"Anyhow, I need to show you around Seireitei!" Rukia exclaimed, her hand tightening around Ichigo's arm. She dragged Ichigo out the door.

Well, more specifically, Rukia pulled Ichigo and Ichigo reluctantly followed her.

He was in the exact opposite position as yesterday, when he was the one dragging Kotarou out the door.

Oh, the irony.

* * *

><p>Rukia and Ichigo briskly walked along the streets of Seireitei.<p>

"This is the restaurant district!" Rukia exclaimed as they turned into a new street, gesturing towards the stores.

"Seireitei has a restaurant district?" Ichigo muttered, giving the restaurants a cursory glance.

"Of course! Shinigami have reiatsu. Therefore, they need food." Rukia said matter-of-factly.

"... who owns the restaurants?" Ichigo asked, his curiousity getting the better of him.

"Certain Rukongai spirits are allowed to open up shops in Seireitei," Rukia explained.

"Anyways, don't you have work?" Ichigo asked.

"No." Rukia shook her head. "I have a break today."

They walked in silence for a few moments, before a voice broke through the silence.

"Ichigo?" a voice called out.

Ichigo and Rukia turned around.

"Ichigo! It _is_ you!" a familiar redhead grinned at the two of them.

"Renji!" Ichigo exclaimed.

"Hey, Ichigo. Nice hakama." Renji smirked. He was porting a white haori on top of his Shinigami uniform. "You're going to the Shinigami Academy, huh?"

"Shut up." Ichigo scowled. "Did you get more arrogant after you became the captain of the 5th squad?"

"Scowling as usual, Ichigo," Renji retorted. "Hey, Rukia. Did Ichigo tell _you_ that he came to Soul Society?"

"No, that idiot didn't say a word," Rukia complained.

"If he didn't tell his_ girlfriend_ that he came, then he probably didn't tell anyone," Renji decided, nodding as if he had figured out something important.

"Rukia's not my _girlfriend_!" Ichigo snapped, his scowl deepening.

"I'm not his _girlfriend!_" Rukia exclaimed at the same time.

"Whatever you say," Renji said, a knowing smirk on his face.

"Don't you have paperwork to do?" Ichigo demanded, changing the subject.

"My lieutenant is doing it," Renji said cheerfully.

A shout of 'Abarai-taichou!' could be heard from their current position.

"Oh, great, she found me. See you later, Ichigo!" Renji gave Ichigo and Rukia a little wave before disappearing in a blur.

Rukia rolled his eyes. "He's always skipping out on his paperwork."

"Didn't he have to do it when he was a vice-captain?" Ichigo asked.

"Nii-sama did most of it," Rukia explained. "Now, let's go to the shopping district next! Do you still have that ticket that Nii-sama gave you a few decades ago?"

"Huh? Oh, that thing that allowed you to buy anything from a Kuchiki shop in Soul Society?" Ichigo rummaged around in a pocket for a moment. "Yeah, I still have it."

"Good. Let's go!" Rukia exclaimed.

* * *

><p><strong>April 1st, 2082. 10:56 p.m. <strong>

Ichigo flopped down on his bed with a sigh.

_Geez, Rukia didn't have to drag me to all those different places... _

_I'm dead tired now._

_I sure hope that she doesn't decide to drag me to a bunch of different places tomorrow as well._

_I have five more days until class starts. _

Ichigo shuddered at the thought of being dragged around for five more days straight.

He closed his eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Next time, Ichigo starts the Shinigami Academy.<strong>_


	4. Kotarou Asks Awkward Questions

**Disclaimer: If I owned Bleach, why in the world would I be writing fanfiction?**

_**I just realized I put a flashback in this chapter. Damn. I don't like flashbacks anymore.**_

Chapter 3: Kotarou Asks Awkward Questions

* * *

><p><strong>April 7th, 2082. Shinigami Academy.<strong>

The sound of beeping broke through Ichigo's deep sleep.

Ichigo groaned, then reluctantly turned it off. Rubbing his eyes, he jumped up from the bed and started changing.

Kotarou had already woken up a few minutes ago. He was waiting for Ichigo to finish changing.

"Okay, let's go," Ichigo muttered, walking up to the door.

"Hey, Kurogi-san... What's with the bracelet?" Kotarou asked.

Ichigo looked- no, glared- at the chunky bracelet around his wrist.

" Er, this is-"

When Urahara had _pushed _him through the Senkaimon to get to Soul Society, he gave him the bracelet.

It helped to repress his monstrous reiatsu. However, it was placed on his wrist against his own will.

Sure, it was useful, but he would have liked to have a choice in the matter!

Not to mention the fact that Ichigo was incapable of taking off the bracelet himself.

_Urahara _was the only one who could do that.

"... something I really don't like." Ichigo muttered.

"Then why are you wear-" Kotarou looked at Ichigo's fiercely scowling face and backed away. "Uh, anyways, let's go to our first class. What's your first class?"

"Don't we have breakfast firs-" Ichigo glanced at the clock. "Oh, _damn_. We need to get to our first class!"

Ichigo raced out of the door, Kotarou following a heartbeat later.

* * *

><p>Katsura and Ichigo were sitting next to each other in the classroom, when a familiar black-haired boy came into the classroom.<p>

"Hey, Ichirou!" he cried.

"Do you know him?" Kotarou asked.

"Uh- oh, yeah! We met at the Shinigami Academy Entrance Exam! He was, er, Suu!"

"Suu, huh? Weird name." Kotarou muttered.

Shuu sat next to Ichigo and Katsura. "Hey! So you got in too! Who's your friend?"

"My name is Kasumi-Ouji Kotarou." Kotarou said politely

"Nice to meet you!" Shuu said cheerfully. "My name's Shuu!"

More shinigami-to-bes came into the classroom. One with orange hair sat in front of Ichigo.

"Did you dye your hair?" Ichigo asked.

"Of course!" The boy turned around and grinned at Ichigo. "Only the awesome Kurosaki Ichigo has hair like this!"

"Do you idolize Kurosaki Ichigo or something?" Kotarou demanded.

"I'm Mouri Kyuubei. Kurosaki Ichigo's number one fan!" Mouri exclaimed.

"Why? It's not like Kurosaki Ichigo did much. The captains did just as much-and more!" IChigo pointed out.

"Yes, but, Kurosaki Ichigo was just an ordinary human!" Mouri insisted.

"Yeah, but-" Ichigo was cut off by the teacher.

"Oi! All you shinigami-to-bes! Look up here!" cried the teacher.

"I'm Shimura Ran, but that's Shimura-sensei to you lot! This is Basic Bakudou! Everyone will be going at more or less their own pace, and if you're really good at Kidou, you might get advanced to Advanced Bakudou. I don't care if you're Kurosaki Ichigo himself-" here, she stared at Ichigo.

Ichigo twitched.

"You'll all be treated the same. You'll be learning bakudou, the way of binding, here- hadou, the way of destruction, is over in Basic Hadou. Got it? Now grab these textbooks." She pointed towards a pile of textbooks on her desk.

After everyone grabbed a textbook, Shimura spoke up again.

"Today, we are going to practice visualizing our chakra," Shimura explained. "This is a necessary step to perform any kidou. Now, everyone, close your eyes..."

* * *

><p>Ichigo groaned, rubbing his forehead. He stared at his timetable in irritation.<p>

"What do you have next, Ichirou?" Shuu asked.

"More kidou. Basic Hadou," Ichigo complained. "After that it's lunch."

"You have quite the bad luck," Kotarou said sympathetically. "Two Kidou classes in a row. I have Basic Hohou, then lunch."

"I have Basic Zanjutsu, Basic Hadou, then lunch," Shuu said. "I don't have lunch with you guys. Damn."

He sighed.

"Well, good luck in your Hadou!" Shuu said cheerfully, heading towards his Zanjutsu classroom.

"See you at lunch," Kotarou said to Ichigo.

Ichigo sighed and mentally prepared himself for his Hadou class.

* * *

><p>Ichigo flopped down on the table and groaned.<p>

Kotarou laughed. "I suppose I do not have to ask you how your hadou class went."

"Please, don't." Ichigo muttered.

Kotarou and Ichigo were sitting at a table in a large room. They were eating their lunch, which was comprised of some sort of Japanese noodle.

"So, what do you have next?" Kotarou asked.

Ichigo glanced at his timetable for a moment.

"Exper- uh, Basic Zanjutsu." Ichigo stumbled over the words. It would be bad if Kotarou noticed his Expert Zanjutsu class.

Kotarou frowned at the slip, but didn't inquire further.

"Well, I have Basic Hakuda," Kotarou said.

The two of them returned to eating their lunch.

* * *

><p>Ichigo slowly opened the door to the Expert Zanjutsu classroom. Walking through the doorway, he looked around the room.<p>

The classroom was in the style of a Japanese dojo, though it was smaller than the typical one. Many shinai, wooden weapons used for practice, were hung up on the wooden wall.

Curious glances were shot towards Ichigo.

Ichigo ignored them all. He simply leaned against a wall and closed his eyes.

A brunet sixth-year walked up to Ichigo.

"I haven't seen you around before," the sixth year said. "Are you a fifth-year?"

Ichigo considered lying, but the lie would be revealed easily if he saw him in a first-year class.

"I'm a first-year," Ichigo admitted.

The sixth-year's eyes widened and he fiercely scowled.

"What is a first year doing here?" he demanded.

Before Ichigo could answer, the teacher came in.

"Hello, everyone," he said. "I am Kudou Masaomi. Everyone, grab a shinai, then get into pairs. We'll start with some simple sparring. No kidou and no shunpo, understood?"

After everyone grabbed their respective shinai, the brunet walked up to Ichigo.

"Ayasaki Shinichi. Nice to meet you," Ayasaki greeted, his hand clenching around his shinai. "Let's see how you do, first year."

"Ku-kurogi Ichirou," Ichigo said simply, getting ready to fight.

Ayasaki and Ichigo fought for a couple minutes before Ichigo's shinai found its way to Ayasaki's throat.

"It's over," Ichigo said with a smirk.

Ayasaki scowled, pushing Ichigo and the shinai away from him.

"I suppose you're not completely useless, first year." Ayasaki glared at Ichigo and stomped away.

_Wow... he's quite childish. _Ichigo thought to himself, looking for a different opponent.

* * *

><p>Classes had long since ended, and Ichigo and Kotarou were in their room.<p>

"So, Kurogi-san, how was your Expert Zanjutsu class?" Kotarou asked innocently.

"Meh, it was okay," Ichigo said without thinking. Then the words registered in his mind. "I mean, uh..."

"Why were you in Expert Zanjutsu?" Kotarou demanded.

"... Good night," he said, flopping down onto the bed.

"Kurogi-san!" Katsura exclaimed.

Ichigo pointedly ignored him.

Katsura frowned.

_I swear, I'm going to solve the mystery called Kurogi Ichirou. _

_How in the _world_ did he get out of a Expert Zanjutsu class without a single bruise or cut?_

* * *

><p><em><strong>I may have forgotten to mention this, but to anyone who's read the original, the name change from 'Katsura' to 'Kotarou' is because 'Katsura' is a last name.<strong>_


End file.
